Philly Confidential

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Four men were arrested Tuesday night after being caught in a narcotics bust in which heroin, cocaine, more than $15,000 in cash and a loaded handgun were confiscated from two houses in Mayfair and Oxford Circle.

Just after 9 p.m. Tuesday, police in the Narcotics Unit executed a warrant at a house on McKinley Street near Brous and found three bricks of heroin, bags of bulk heroin, a bag of black tar heroin, three bags of cocaine, various paraphernalia, and two bags of horse tranquilizer – which is used to dilute heroin, police said.

Authorities had been performing surveillance on the stash house for an undisclosed amount of time, police said.

Cops initially said the drugs were worth about $1.5 million Tuesday night. However, police Wednesday said the heroin had a street value of over $1.8 million and the cocaine was worth about $42,000.

Around 9:40 p.m., cops searched another house on Elbridge Street near Loretto in Oxford Circle and found $15,428 and a loaded .22-caliber Smith and Wesson handgun. Police said the serial number on the weapon had been obliterated and the gun contained five live rounds of ammunition.

Police arrested three following three Philadelphia men and one from Allentown in connection with the drug ring:

Felix Fernandez, 37, of McKinley Street near Brous in Mayfair.

Ramon Pedraza, 26, of Elbridge Street near Loretto in Oxford Circle.

Henry Luis Diaz, 48, of Diamond Street near 6th in the Hartranft section of North Philadelphia.

Frank Hidalgo, 36, of Howard Street near Juniata in Allentown.

Hidalgo, Fernandez and Pedraza are facing charges of drug possession and distribution, conspiracy and possession of an instrument of crime, said Tasha Jamerson, spokeswoman for the District Attorney’s office. Diaz was charged with drug possession and distribution, and is being held on $50,000, Jamerson said.

Hidalgo’s bail was set at $10 million, Fernandez and Pedraza are being held on $5 million bail, Jamerson said, adding that Nebbia Orders were placed on their cases — which are used to ensure that profits from drug sales are not used as bail money.